1. Field of the Invention
The disclosed invention relates to games of chance generally, and more particularly to a game which involves four number containing game areas and in which game a winner is established based upon having placed a wager on numbers which are selected to appear in game areas three and four in accordance with a selected criteria which operate on numbers which are caused to be present in first and second game areas based upon chance.
2. Description of the Background Art
There are many types of games of chance that involve wagering on numbers, characters, or symbols to be drawn. Keno is one well known game of chance. In keno, players wager on which numbers will be drawn from a pool of eighty numbers (numbers 1-80). The draw order does not matter. Twenty numbers are typically drawn or selected by the gaming establishment. The more of those 20 numbers a player can match, the greater the winnings and payout. Other types of related games of chance are bingo and lotteries, for example.
FIG. 1 shows a prior art keno game area 100. The prior art keno game area 100 typically includes a first number matrix 101 that displays numbers 1 through 40 and a second number matrix 102 that displays numbers 41 through 80. Before each game, the players may wager on from one to generally twenty numbers, with varying payouts depending on the quantity of numbers wagered and the quantity that a player matches. The gaming establishment may set the payouts for the various draw quantities and matching quantities.
Keno, and other games of chance, can be played using paper tickets. In this version of the game, a player marks a ticket to indicate his or her number selections and then registers the ticket with a cashier. The ticket is then played against the next game displayed on a common board or number display, with each player playing one or more independent tickets. The display may show the twenty random numbers which were selected. In a common number draw setup, the numbers may be drawn using numbered ping pong balls (similar to a lottery). However, the numbers may also be electronically generated. The player then reviews his or her ticket and submits it to the cashier for any payout.
In an electronic version of a game of chance, a single layer plays against an electronic gaming machine for each round of the game and the player either wins or loses each round. The player wagers a coin, token or credit. The gaming machine displays the eighty number choices and accepts the player""s number choices. Then the gaming machine randomly selects twenty numbers from the pool of eighty numbers and determines whether the player has achieved a winning payout.
Gaming types and variations have remained relatively unchanged over time. The existing games of chance continue to dominate, and new games or game variations have not appeared or caught on in any numbers. Established games such as blackjack, craps, roulette and baccarat are still widely played in an essentially unchanged form.
Some attempts have been made to provide more excitement and to obtain more frequent customers and more loyal customers by providing gaming devices which increase the player""s odds of winning. These attempts have generally not been successful as they increase the complexity of the game. However, gaming establishments would like to attract a wider range of clientele, including persons who do not have gaming experience or who do not want to learn complicated and extensive rules.
What is needed, therefore, are improvements in games of chance.
A method of playing a game of chance is provided according to the invention. The method includes the steps of placing a wager and selecting, prior to a draw, a single item selection indicium representing single items in a game draw or selecting, prior to the draw, a multiple item selection indicium representing multiple items in a game draw. At least one single item or multiple item grouping is capable of being selected by a player as a wager of an item to be drawn in a predetermined draw occurrence.
A method of playing a game of chance is provided according to the invention. The method includes the steps of providing a plurality of single item selection indicia representing single items in a game draw and providing a plurality of multiple item selection indicia representing multiple items in a game draw. At least one of the plurality of single item selection indicia and the plurality of multiple item selection indicia are capable of being selected by a player in a game of chance prior to a draw as a wager of an item to be drawn in a predetermined draw occurrence.
A game of chance apparatus is provided according to the invention. The game of chance apparatus includes an item selection device and a game area. The game area includes a group of items representing all or part of a pool of items from which one or more items are drawn in a game of chance. The game area further includes a plurality of single item selection indicia disposed on the game area. Each single item selection indicium corresponds to an item of the game area. One or more indicium of the plurality of single item selection indicia may be selected by a player as a wager of an item to be drawn by the item selection device in a predetermined draw occurrence. The game area further includes a plurality of multiple item selection indicia disposed on the game area. Each multiple item selection indicium corresponds to a sub-group of two or more of the items of the game area. One or more indicium of the plurality of multiple item selection indicia may be selected by a player as a wager of an item to be drawn by the item selection device in the predetermined draw occurrence.
The disclosed invention can be further described as a method of determining a winner in a game of chance comprising the steps of:
a) providing four game areas, the first and third thereof comprising arbitrary numbers W-X and the second and forth thereof comprising arbitrary numbers Y-Z;
practicing steps b and c in either order:
b) having at least one person place a wager that at least one number in at least one of said third and forth game areas will be selected;
c) determining a criteria for selecting numbers in the third and forth game areas based on numbers selected in the first and second game areas;
d) selecting numbers in the first and second game areas based upon chance, and based upon said step c criteria for selecting numbers in the third and forth game areas, selecting numbers in said third and forth game areas based thereupon;
e) determining if a number wagered on by at least one person in at least one of said third and forth game areas in step b was selected in step d, and if so determining said at least one person who made said wager as a winner.
In keeping with KENO as a very relevant model, said method of determining a winner typically assigns:
W=1;
X=40;
Y=41; and
Z=80.
The step d selecting of numbers in the first and second game areas is preferably based on substantially random number generation from a game area of numbers from W-Z, however, the step d selecting of a number in the first game area can be based on substantially random number generation from a game area of numbers W-X and the step d selecting of a number in the second game area can be based on substantially random number generation from a game area of numbers Y-Z. Where W=1; X=40; Y=41; and Z=80 the step d selecting of a number in the first and second game areas is then typically based on substantially random number generation from a game area of numbers of 1-80 and preferred practice provides that the substantially random number generation is conducted without number replacement once a number is selected. An alternative approach provides that said method of determining a winner can provide that the step d selecting of a number in the first game area is based on substantially random number generation from a game area of numbers of 1-40; and wherein the step d selecting of a number in the second game area is based on substantially random number generation from a game area of numbers of 41-80, again preferably wherein substantially random number generation is conducted without number replacement once a number is selected.
While any functional criteria can be adopted, a preferred approach provides that the step c determined criteria for selecting numbers in the third and forth game areas based on numbers selected in the first and second game areas respectively, is that the first numbers selected in the first and second game areas based upon chance are entered directly to game areas three and four. An equally preferred approach provides that the last numbers selected in the first and second game areas based upon chance can also be entered directly to game areas three and four. Additional step c) a criteria for selecting numbers in the third and forth game areas based on numbers selected in the first and second game areas respectively, said criteria being selected from the group consisting of:
the first number selected by chance in said first game area and no number entered to said second game area;
the first number selected by chance in said second game area and no number entered to said first game area;
all numbers selected by chance in the range of (1-40) in said first game area and all numbers selected by chance in the range of (41-80) in said second game area;
the first number selected by chance in each of said first and second game areas is entered directly to the third and forth game areas respectively;
the Nth number selected in the range of (1-40) by chance in said first game area and the Nth number in the range (41-80) in said second game area are entered directly to the third and forth game areas respectively;
any number selected in the range of (1-40) by chance in said first game area and/or any number in the range (41-80) in said second game area is/are, based on random selection, entered directly to the third and forth game areas respectively;
d) selecting twenty (20) numbers based upon chance in the range (1-80) and distributing at least some of the N thereof which are in the range of (1-40) to said first game area and the at least some of the remaining (20-N) thereof which are in the range of (41-80) to said second game area, and based upon said step c criteria for selecting numbers in the third and forth game areas, selecting numbers in said third and forth game areas based upon said numbers caused to be present in said first and second game areas;
e) determining if a number wagered on by at least one person in at least one of said third and forth game areas in step b was selected in step d, and if so determining said at least one person who made said wager as a winner.